Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports
Wrestler Bajrang Punia bags bronze medal in men's freestyle 65 kg category, sixth medal for India in Tokyo Olympics
Key Highlight:
- Punia defeated Kazakhstan's Daulet Niyazbekov 8-0 in the bronze medal match
- President Shri Ram Nath Kovid and Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi congratulate Bajrang for his performance
- Congratulating Bajrang, Sports Minister Anurag Singh Thakur says, I am so proud of you, loved watching your dominating performance and spectacular finish
Wrestler Bajrang Punia won the bronze medal in the men's freestyle 65 Kg category at the Tokyo Olympics 2020 today. He defeated Kazakhstan's Daulet Niyazbekov 8-0 in the bronze medal match. This was India’s sixth medal in the Tokyo Olympics thus equaling the London Olympic record of six medals. President Shri Ram Nath Kovind, Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, Sports Minister Shri Anurag Thakur and Indians from all corners of the country congratulated Bajrang Punia for his achievement.
President Sri Ram Nath Kovind congratulated the wrestler and said every Indian shares the joy of his success. “A special moment for Indian wrestling! Congratulations to Bajrang Punia for winning the Bronze at #Tokyo2020. You have distinguished yourself as an outstanding wrestler with untiring efforts, consistency and tenacity over the years. Every Indian shares the joy of your success!” the President tweeted.
Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi congratulated Bajrang for his performance and tweeted, “Delightful news from #Tokyo2020! Spectacularly fought @BajrangPunia. Congratulations to you for your accomplishment, which makes every Indian proud and happy.”
Sports Minister Shri Anurag Thakur shared a clip of him watching the winning moment on Twitter with congratulation message. “Bronze for Bajrang!!! You did it! India is thrilled beyond words! I am so proud of you, loved watching your dominating performance and spectacular finish! #Tokyo2020.” Sports Minister tweeted.
BajrangPunia- BajrangPunia started wrestling at the age of 7. He belongs to a family of a rural background in Khudan village of Jhajjar district in the state of Haryana. As Bajrang was not born with a silver spoon so he had to face many monetary hardships during his initial days. However, it was his friend cum guru the famous wrestler YogeshwarDutt who has always supported him.
Personal details:
Date of Birth: February 26, 1994
Home location:Sonipat, Haryana
Sport: Wrestling
Training Base: SAI NRC Sonipat
Personal Coach:Emzarios Bentinidis
National Coach:Jagmander Singh
Achievements
● World Championship -1 Silver and 2 Bronze
● Asian Championship – 2 Gold, 3 Silver, 2 Bronze medals
● Asian Games – 1 Gold and 1 Silver
● Commonwealth Games- 1 Gold and 1 Silver
Key Govt. Interventions
● Preparatory training camp in Russia for Olympic Games
● Preparatory training camp in Michigan, USA for two months along with his support staff
● Preparatory training camp in USA, Russia and Georgia and prior to Senior World Championship 2019 
● Participation in Ali Aliev, Tbilisi G.P, Asian Championships, YaaarDogu and MatteoPellicone Ranking tournaments which was provided by TOPS and ACTC
● Supplements and Mats during lockdown 
● Sport S&C Equipments
● Visa support through MYAS and MEA for international players as sparring partners
● Visa facilitation for Bajrang and support team to Russia for Olympic preparation
● Inclusion of personal coach and support staff during the national Camps
TOPS: Rs. 1,47,40,348
ACTC: Rs. 59,07,151
TOTAL: Rs. 2,06,47,499
Details of coaches:
Grassroot Level:-Virender
Development Level: Rampal
Elite Level: Jagmander Singh/EmzariosBentinidis